Is HubSpot a CRM, a CMS, or both, and how does that change what an implementation project looks like?

HubSpot is both a customer relationship management (CRM) system and a content management system (CMS). The CRM stores contact and deal data. The CMS, sold as Content Hub, hosts and manages the website. An implementation can cover one or both, which changes the scope, cost, and team involved.

The distinction matters because the two halves are different projects. HubSpot sells its hubs, including Marketing, Sales, Service, Content, and Data, on one shared database, with the Smart CRM underneath all of them. A CRM implementation is a data and process project. It covers importing contacts, building deal pipelines, setting custom properties, and training the sales team. A CMS implementation is a design and development project. It covers page templates, content migration, redirects, and site performance. The two need different skills, so agencies often staff them with different people.

A combined implementation, where the website and the CRM launch together, is the largest version of the project. It usually takes the longest because content, design, and data workstreams all run at once. Scoping the project starts with deciding which half of the platform you are actually buying.